It's called a free market system. if you don't like the pricing, contract length, etc.... then go to another carrier or go prepaid. If you want the best, most reliable then go with the carrier in your area that offers the best and STFUAlso, for the writer of this piece who claims share plans are more expensive here's some basic math:
VZW 1 year ago: 700 min + unlim text + 2 smartphones, 2GB each = $159.99
VZW today: unlim minutes, unlim text, 4 GB shared data = $150this math is almost identical for AT&T
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Data is cheaper to transmit, so why is Verizon more expensive?
iDownloader Pro – Download, Open and Organize Files Like You Do on PC
London, United Kingdom – Apps4Stars is proud to present the new iDownloader Pro 1.0.1 for iOS: a powerful download and file manager that gives your iOS device the critical missing functions of the PC or Mac. Download, play, view, organize any type of file including video, audio, PDFs, eBooks, archives, documents and others. Extract password-protected archives and share files with PC or Mac over WiFi. Save website passwords and protect your personal data.
“When we developed iDownloader we wanted to take away all limitations iOS users have in downloading and working with widely used types of files,” says Andrew Haffenden, CEO of Apps4Stars. “iDownloader Pro will open a whole new world of possibilities for your iDevice.”
iDownloader Pro comes with a full featured multi-tab Safari-like browser making browsing intuitive and easy. The browser supports bookmarks, history, private browsing, ad blocking and more. In addition you can store all your logins and passwords in integrated Web password keeper that will allow you to login to all your web accounts in just three taps.
The built-in download manager supports downloading of any types of files and includes resume, background and up to 40 simultaneous downloads. The key feature of iDownloader is streaming video support: you can download any streaming video you can open with your Safari browser.
With iDownloader Pro you get full freedom in organizing and working with your files – just as simple as you do it on your Mac or PC. Create folders and subfolders, sort, rename and edit files and meta tags, extract ZIP and RAR archives (including password protected), easily share your files with PC/Mac over Wifi.
Media and document processing with iDownloader is amazingly robust and smooth. Advanced media player supports all major media formats while powerful document reader will open e-books, office docs, PDFs and more. You can preview videos before downloading and download them right from the media player in one tap. iDownloader Pro also supports video and audio playlists, album cover flow, lyrics, sleep timer, lock screen controls, Airplay and many more.
iDownloader Pro delivers a complex security solution for your files as well: easily hide and protect your private files with full app pass code protection. You can choose between stylish dot lock pattern and digital pass code.
Full List of iDownloader Pro Features:
Web Browser:
* Multi-tab Safari-like browser
* Tap and hold to force download
* Full screen mode
* Bookmark manager
* Ability to spoof browser’s user-agent
* HTTP authorization support
* Private browsing
* Search history
* Browsing history
* UTF addresses support
* Pop-UP blocker
Web Password Keeper:
* Allows to Login into any website in just 3 taps
* Saves and manages as many user profiles for each website as you want
* Exclusions list allows switch off saving your passwords for selected websites
* Note: To start the Web Password Keeper, please switch it “On” in the app’s Settings
Download Manager:
* Ultra fast downloading speed
* Up to 50 simultaneous downloads
* Download in background mode (10 min max due to iOS restrictions)
* Supports resumption of interrupted downloads
* Download files larger 20MB over 3G
Music Player:
* Music playback of mp3, wav and m4a formats
* Music playlists
* Equalizer
* Repeat and shuffle songs
* Background / Lock screen playing mode
* Save the audio play position
* Sleep timer
* Album covers
* Lyrics
Video Player:
* Video playback of mp4 and m4v
* Video playlists
* Thumbnails view
* Export videos to camera roll
* AirPlay support (iOS 4.2 or above)
* Save the video play position
File Manager:
* Automatically rename downloaded songs by Artist and Song Title
* Folder and sub-folder support
* Move, rename and delete files
* Sorting by name, type, size, date
* Sort files in ascending or descending order
* Extract zip and rar archives
* iTunes file sharing folder support
* USB and Wi-Fi transfer to/from PC or Mac
File Viewer:
* Full-featured photo viewer with slideshows
* Full-featured document viewer that supports .pdf, .doc, .xls, .ppt, .txt, .html, .webarchive and .rtf file formats
* Open files in other apps
* Share via USB, Wi-Fi or Email
Password Lock Your Personal Data:
* Dot Lock pattern
* Digital Passcode
Language Support:
English, Arabic, Chinese, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish
Device Requirements:
* iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
* Requires iOS 4.3 or later
* Optimized for iPhone 5
* 9.8 MB
Pricing and Availability:
iDownloader Pro is $1.99 USD and available worldwide, exclusively through the App Store in the Utilities category. Review copies are available upon request. iDownloader Free is also available through the App Store.
iDownloader Pro 1.0.1
Purchase and Download
iDownloader Free 1.0.1
App Icon (zip)
Press Kit
Apps4Stars is a mobile development company founded in 2013. We focus on niche utility applications for iOS platforms to bring more productivity to iOS users. Copyright (C) 2013 Apps4Stars. All Rights Reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone, iPod, and iPad are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries.
Apple expected to announce another record quarter today, here is what to expect
After Google’s big financials release yesterday, today it’s Apple’s turn and this would be probably the most important announcement as everyone is expecting lots of iPhones sold and another record-shattering quarter.
Stay tuned for the actual results arriving later on today.
What makes this quarter’s earnings particularly interesting is the sharp decline in Apple stock value over the last few months. Since September, Apple stock has tanked to around $500, down from reaching nearly $700 value.
We’ve heard numerous reports about declining supply, demand and who knows what else for Apple devices so it’d be interesting to see how many iPhones and iPad Apple actually sold. Here is Wall Street’s analysts’ forecast:
Revenue: $54.58 billionEPS: $13.34Gross Margin: 39.5%iPhone: 50 millioniPad: 23 millionMac: 5 millioniPod: 12 millionMarch quarter revenue: $46.9 billionMarch quarter EPS: $12.10March quarter gross margin: 41.5%Stay tuned for the actual results arriving later on today.
source: Business Insider
Average user looks at phone 150 times a day: here is what we are looking at
Have you ever heard about the 150 number in the context of cell phones? In 2010, Nokia found 150 is the number of times the average person looks at a phone every single day. And here we are not talking just about smartphones, feature phones as well. 
All earlier studies had this number below 100 so having the then new report about the reality being 50% higher is quite shocking. Interestingly, T-Mobile has confirmed the same number for the U.S. market in a study of its own last year. And in the UK, claims are that number has reached 200.
But what are people really looking at all those times? Former Nokia executive and currently market analyst Tomi Ahonen paints a picture of the habits of the average user. Take a look and let us know - what do you look at most on your phone?
source: Communities Dominate Brands
HTC M7 coming to Verizon, Sprint and AT&T?
The HTC M7 is the next flagship model coming from the Taiwan based manufacturer and just the other day we finally got to see what the fuss is all about. Thanks to the FHD resolution on a somewhat smaller 4.7 inch display, the pixel density hits an amazing 468ppi. To put that in perspective, the Retina display on the Apple iPhone 5 weighs in at 326ppi. A quad-core processor will be under the hood, 2GB of RAM is on board and the back and front cameras weigh in at 13MP and 2MP respectively.
So where will the HTC M7 end up in the U.S.? According to serial leakers evleaks, this high-end flagship model will be available at Verizon, AT&T and Sprint. A tweet sent from the source calls the nation's fourth largest carrier the only one of the nation's four major wireless operators not to have concrete proof that it will offer the unit. If this holds out, T-Mobile customers will miss out on be able to purchase the first handset to feature HTC Sense 5.0, which offers an easier to use UI, a re-designed lock screen and HTC apps.
We should see this beast make an appearance at MWC next month in Barcelona with a launch not too much longer afterward.
source: @evleaks via Pocketlint
Google says Nexus 4 supply a "priority", will focus Motorola on future phones' battery life and durability
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Cobra iRadar 200 Review
Introduction:
Back during the summer of 2011, veteran radar detector maker, Cobra, brought to market its first smart radar detector in the iRadar 100, and we managed to check it out from head-to-toe to find out what the talk was all about. With that first model, it was specifically designed to work with the iPhone – while Android owners were left out in the dust to fend for themselves. Thankfully enough, their second offering in the iRadar 200 remedies that issue, seeing that it’s compatible to work with iOS and Android devices (also independently as well). Brandishing the same price point of $129.99 online and through various retailers, let’s dive in and see what we can expect out of this updated model.
Design:
Although the iRadar 200 is sporting a different design from its predecessor, it’s not dramatic at all to make it one of its standouts. Rather, it’s slightly more compact this time around, considering that it’s slightly shorter. Relying on an all-plastic chassis, the card deck sized iRadar 200 feels a bit hollow – making it feel as though it’s cheaper in construction than its $130 price point. Still, we do appreciate that it’s now sporting a soft touch matte finish on its top surface – whereas before, it was completely glossy and prone to smudges. Complementing its dark figure, it has a silver plastic trim that wraps around the outer edge of the iRadar 200. Overall, it’s not something complex or futuristic looking like some high-end dedicated radar detectors out there, but its minimalistic approach is nevertheless appreciated.
Along its top surface, there’s an over-sized recessed and springy mute button that’s ready to silence any of the glaring notification tones that it produces. Above it, the internal speaker is behind a grill, which delivers some extra potent tones at the loudest volume setting.
Both the right and front edges of the iRadar 200 are clean, but there’s actually an LED light positioned squarely in the middle area of the front bezel. In fact, it’s either in red or blue to indicate if it’s connected to a device or not. On the left edge of it though, we find its power connection port, a switch that positions it to work with an iOS (white) or Android (green) device, and its combination power & volume control. Finally, the back portion with its shaded surface hides away the radar detection components, and there’s a narrow slit that allows it to connect with the suction cup holder. Worthy of being mentioned too, the car power adapter included with the iRadar 200 features a very useful USB port to charge other devices. CleverFeed – Smart RSS Reader for Google Reader Subscriptions
Bellevue, Washington – Eltima Software has released Beta version of CleverFeed – smart reader for Google Reader subscriptions. It will sort the news in a convenient and smart way: according to your tastes and preferences most desirable news will come first.
How it works:
All you need to do is define what you are interested in and add such tags in CleverFeed. Once done, CleverFeed will sort all news you are subscribed to according to your interests.
You can train CleverFeed by liking or disliking the articles it sorts for you. The more news you rate, the more precisely to your liking the clever feed will be generated in future.
What makes CleverFeed outstanding is that it ranks RSS posts in real time (unlike other RSS readers), so be sure, you are getting the freshest and most interesting news immediately!
CleverFeed is currently in Beta stage, so if you have any suggestions or improvement ideas, do not hesitate to send them to us.
System Requirements:
* Mac OS X 10.7 or later
* 3 MB of hard disk space
Pricing and Availability:
CleverFeed Beta is free and distributed exclusively through Eltima Software website. If you would like to know more, please contact Eltima Software online.
Eltima Software is a global software Development Company, specializing primarily in serial communication, mobile and flash software for Mac OS and Windows. Eltima Software delivers top-notch solutions having a friendly team of 40 professionals. Copyright (C) 2011 Eltima Software. All Rights Reserved. Apple, the Apple logo and Macintosh are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries.
Are the carriers the reason for Samsung’s lagging Windows Phone effort in the US?
Samsung is the big kid on the block. The Korean manufacturer is the largest handset maker in the world. In the US, half of all the Android devices lighting up the networks are made by Samsung.
No doubt, Samsung carries a lot of clout, they make and sell hundreds of millions of smartphones every year, so the company knows it is doing something right. Samsung was the first manufacturer to announce a Windows Phone 8 handset, the ATIV S, way back in August 2012. Then, news about the Samsung ATIV S was relatively uneventful for a while. The Samsung ATIV S was never announced for the US market, though the device is available in Canada, Europe and elsewhere.
The official word from Microsoft was that Samsung would offer the ATIV Odyssey in the US on Verizon starting this past December, but we all know how that went. We got to see the ATIV Odyssey in action at CES a couple weeks ago, but still no official date as to when it would be available. Information about a possible release on the 24th is still based only on a leak.
Why has Samsung, a company that knows how to dominate a market segment, been so slow off the blocks to bring a Windows Phone 8 device in the US, and an entry-level one at that? Well, analysts tell The Korean Times that carriers are being “intentionally less enthusiastic” about Samsung’s Windows Phone 8 devices. It would seem that the carriers do not wish Samsung to dominate two platforms.The more dominant the manufacturer gets, the more it is able to dictate the terms for its devices being offered in a given market. Kim Sang-pyo of HMC Securities believes that carriers will eventually bend to Samsung’s pressure to offer more Windows Phone devices. Citing that the Android ecosystem is getting more and more saturated, Samsung sees Windows Phone as a solid diversification avenue since the outlook for Windows Phone 8 is looking good, and Nokia just posted some great sales figures to back that forecast.
A couple other analysts agree with that overall outlook, with one noting that Samsung also has a stronger brand loyalty over whatever loyalty there may be to Android as an operating system. One example given is Samsung’s sales of the Windows 8 ATIV tablets, in South Korea, Samsung has sold over 80,000 of them, beating sales of the Nexus 7.
Maybe Microsoft played favorites with Nokia and HTC to give the two underdogs a foothold with the new platform. It is certainly feasible that US carriers scoffed at Samsung’s plans for a higher end Windows Phone, given the manufacturer’s success with Android it is entirely possible Samsung wanted volume guarantees that the carriers, particularly AT&T and Verizon, were not willing to sign up in the wake of anemic Windows Phone 7 sales. What do you think? Is this the work of the carriers keeping Samsung at bay?sources: iFans via WPCentral
Ripple Tools for Final Cut Pro X
Boston, Massachusetts – Noise Industries, developer of visual effects tools for the post-production and broadcast markets, brings 12 easy-to-use, super handy title effects to users’ fingertips with Ripple Tools. A versatile and powerful effects toolbox for use in Final Cut Pro(R) X, Ripple Tools is a set of plugins that allow the user to quickly accomplish a number of effects and editorial tasks. Add split screens; use 8 or 16 point mattes; add adjustment layers to control the look of multiple clips; color balance using traditional color wheels; apply vintage and black-and-white effects; move images in 3D space and use the incredibly useful guides for aligning text and graphic elements on the screen.
Feature Highlights:
* 3D Text
* Blend Modes
* Outline Fill
* Split screens
* 8 or 16 point mattes
* Adjustment layers to control the look of multiple clips simultaneously
* Color balance using traditional color wheels
* Vintage Looks
* Black and white effects
* Simple 3D effects
* Align text and graphics with incredibly useful guides and rulers
About Ripple Training and president, Steve Martin:
Founded in 2002, Ripple Training Inc. is an online digital training and content distribution company specializing in software training products and plug-ins for postproduction professionals. Ripple Training was founded by editor and producer Steve Martin, who has over 18 years of experience as an editor, educator and producer.
Ripple Tools is now available for only $29.00 USD.
Established in 2004, Boston, Massachusetts-based Noise Industries is an innovative developer of visual effects tools for the post-production and broadcast community. Their products are integrated with popular non-linear editing and compositing products from Apple and Adobe. For more information, please visit the Noise Industries website. Copyright (C) 2013 Noise Industries, LLC. All Rights Reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, Mac OS X, and Macintosh are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries.
Analyst thinks BlackBerry 10 is nothing but "a gambit intended to facilitate a sale of RIM"
analyst dont know a thing.. they just keep on talking s**t! no one can predict what will happen to the future!this is one of the worst jobs in the world (the other one being a paparazzi)!
HP bought palm for they think webOS is really futuristic, and all people think of that as well! but HP has a very bad leadership! bad CEO thats why they are going down now! (same as nokia, very very bad CEO, MeeGo was the future, they are just afraid to see that)
also same as google motorola, motorola dont make a buzz after they are bought by google, but i hope that will change this year!
unlike the situation of RIM and BB, they have the almost perfect combination... they have good leadership and good CEO, coz the past CEO before still think touchscreen and iphones are just toys and its platform will be just fine..but CEO Heins change that with BB10..
they also have huge support to the devs.. i mean 70,000 apps at launch?! thats amazing! and they will reach 100,000 apps in no time! they might achieve that in less than a year, unlike WP, they just got the 100,000 apps after 2 years!
so again, alalyst talk s**ts... and clearly this writer dont shock me about writing this things since he always write bad things for BB and RIM image... sad story that forbes still accept him!
Satechi BT Smart Pointer hands-on
Last summer, presentation aficionados might’ve jumped on the Satechi Bluetooth Media Remote, since it seemed like the perfect companion for any important presentation. Well folks, they’re at it again now that its successor, the Satechi BT Smart Pointer, is now available and sporting some new things – and it’s compatible to work with a wide variety of Bluetooth enabled devices
Compared to its predecessor, the Satechi BT Smart Pointer is a bit beefier in terms of size, though, it’s still very compact and lightweight. Actually, the increase in size is a welcome sight, considering that its predecessor came off a little bit on the cheap side with its construction and choice of materials. Again it’s constructed out of mostly plastic, but we do appreciate the subtle new things it’s sporting – like the chrome trim and soft touch finish. However, the control schematics remain relatively unchanged.
Specifically, the Satechi BT Smart Pointer features three distinct modes, which can be selected by choosing the correct mode on its right edge. First, there’s the accessibility mode that enables you to use it to browse/open apps and navigate through keynote slides – albeit, you’ll need to enable the VoiceOver feature in the Accessibility settings of an iOS device. Secondly, the multimedia mode turns it into a dedicated media playback control, which allows for pause/play, forward/reverse, and volume adjustment. Finally, the presentation mode allows you to navigate through slides.
Additionally, the inclusion of a red laser pointer and rechargeable battery are new things we haven’t seen before, so they’re obviously welcomed too. One of the practical scenarios that the Satechi BT Smart Pointer comes to good use is when we’re taking photos, since we can prop our device on something and take a snapshot from afar with the Satechi BT Smart Pointer.
Donning a $44.99 price point, which is $5 more than the starting price of the original model, it makes plenty of sense considering some of the new inclusions coming along with it.
Nokia to max out at 4.7" for its flagship phones this year
had it with this if you dont praise android every chance you get you must hate it bsso here
http://www.phonearena.com/news/Next-problem-with-the-Apple-iPhone-5-brings-purple-tinting-to-certain-pictures_id34905/comments/page/2
http://www.phonearena.com/news/Some-new-Apple-iPhone-5-units-are-coming-out-of-the-box-with-scuff-marks-and-dings_id34767/comments/page/2
run through them, i hate fanboys and ones like you who only see a problem when its against a fellow android user are some of the worst as you make the problem worse
http://www.phonearena.com/news/Samsungs-Chief-Strategy-Officer-becomes-an-Apple-fanboy-at-home_id37629
heres an article showing what you support, the android fanboys are pathetic on that one so enjoy
http://www.phonearena.com/news/New-York-citizens-seem-to-prefer-iPhone-over-Android_id36778
another where android fans insult general users who choose the iphone
whats so annoying is how you love to point out when android isnt been worshipped, but you never say a word against android fanboys insulting others, why is it one way?
lastly though i hate fanboys, i have said many times about how good android is but it aint perfect ive said the s3 is a great device, how sonys new z is a real competitor etc .but the second you say something negative towards android is the second you lot jump on people for it
so look at those articles and you should see i go after fanboys and not slate os' etc if not then you must be another blind one who only cares when its in favor of there preferance
HTC M7 introduction might be sooner than you think
It had been thought that the HTC M7, the next flagship Android model for the Taiwan based manufacturer, would be introduced at MWC in Barcelona. The annual event starts on February 25th. But wouldn't it be great if the phone was unveiled earlier? If a particular tweet contains legitimate information, the HTC M7 will be unwrapped a few days earlier next month. According to a person who claims to have connections from his "many years of work in the field," the handset will be revealed on February 19th at a dedicated event in London.
Now a few days earlier might not seem like a big deal to many of you, but hey, we're talking about a full HD resolution on a 4.7 inch display. That works out to an unearthly 468ppi pixel density. And while we are on the subject of tweets, as we told you Tuesday night, @evleaks sent one out yesterday revealing that T-Mobile is not going to get this device. That leaves Verizon, AT&T and Sprint customers interested in what happens in London next month.
source: @flapic via UnwiredView
Samsung using diamond-shaped pixels for 440ppi+ AMOLED panels to debut in the Galaxy S IV
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Windows Phone 7.8 SDK arrives, 7.8 update soon to come
Microsoft has just released its Windows Phone 7.8 SDK, an “optional update” for developers that brings two new emulator images to the existing one.
“These two emulator images should enable you to fully test how your Windows Phone 7.5 app’s Live Tiles will look and behave when they are run on a device running Windows Phone 7.8,” Microsoft writes.
Most importantly, it’s another indicator that the update itself is finally, finally coming. Windows Phone 7.8 is the last update to WP 7.x-based devices like the Nokia Lumia 900. It brings only a few features, most notably small-sized live tiles to the home screen, and Microsoft has earlier vaguely said that it’d arrive in “early 2013.”
Microsoft also makes mention of new phones on 7.8 “beginning to ship,” which is good news.
source: Windows Phone Developer Blog
Are you looking for a house or apartment? Check out these apps for iOS, Android and Windows Phone
The real estate market is showing signs of life again in the US, and has been for the better part of the past year. While the days of the "NINJa" loan (No Job No Income) mortgage are long gone, generally lower prices in many markets are making housing widely accessible, especially for people who have been saving up money for a down payment, or people who might qualify for an FHA loan, or recently honorably discharged veterans with a VA loan at their disposal.
Markets on the coasts are heating up again, inventory levels in parts of Northern California are as low as a couple weeks (meaning that if no more houses went up for sale, remaining listings would be consumed within two weeks). Florida and Arizona are the other hot markets right now as well. If you are in the hunt for a house, that means that finding listings fast, looking at them and contacting the real estate agent quickly can mean the difference between getting the house you want or not.
These apps can be a handy helper in your search for your dream home and they may prove indispensable if you are the type who wants to shop without the help of an agent tracking properties down for you. All of these apps use GPS, show properties for sale or rent (including apartments), enable quick contact to listing agents and provide a myriad of other tools which you might find useful. All but one are available for iOS, Android and Windows Phone. Of course it is not a complete listing either, but if you were thinking of looking around, these app are a fine place to start. So, get out there an find a place to call home!
New feature from Lookout snaps picture of possible phone thieves
Lookout has added a new feature to its Android app called Lock Cam that can help identify phone thieves. Lock Cam will alert you if someone is trying to steal your Android phone or is trying to break in to access personal information. If someone tries three times to enter the wrong password into your lockscreen, the front-facing camera will snap a picture of the thief and send it to you via email. Along with the picture, the email will also send you a location of the phone using the GPS on the device.
The Lock Cam feature is available for those with a front-facing camera on a phone running Android 2.3 or higher with the lock screen enabled. Right now, you must be a premium member to use Lock Cam although Lookout says it will be added to the free version of the app sometime in the next week.
The Lock Cam feature is available for those with a front-facing camera on a phone running Android 2.3 or higher with the lock screen enabled. Right now, you must be a premium member to use Lock Cam although Lookout says it will be added to the free version of the app sometime in the next week.
Lookout also has added a new feature for its paying members ($2.99 month/$29.99 year) that lets users write a message of up to 300 characters on their Lookout Lock Screen that tells those who might find the phone, where to return it to. If you've ever had the misfortune to have had your phone stolen or lost, you probably realize how useful the Lookout app can be.
source: Lookout via PCMag
Pricing announced - Samsung ATIV Odyssey launching on Verizon January 24th
Better late than never, right? If you have been waiting for Samsung’s Windows Phone entry in the US, it is possible you will not be waiting much longer. The Twitter leakers @evleaks passed along a tip that the Samsung ATIV Odyssey will be available on Verizon January 24th. The 24th is a Thursday which is a common day for new devices to be available in the corporate stores. We got to take some hands-on time with the ATIV Odyssey at CES and while the device has specifications that are marginally below the Nokia Lumia 822, the Odyssey is tidy little device.
Its 4-inch screen and form factor makes it comfortable to hold and use with one hand. The Odyssey has a nice sized battery too, which means that this Windows Phone entry is going to be a capable handset for anyone who uses it. With a 5MP camera, 4-inch screen, 2,100mAh battery and Windows Phone 8, we think the ATIV Odyssey will price for free on a two-year contract with Verizon.
sources: @evleaks (Twitter) via WPCentral
UPDATE: Verizon announced today that the Samsung ATIV Odyssey will indeed be available in stores and online starting tomorrow the 24th. Verizon also announced the subsidized price point for the ATIV Odyssey and a two-year agreement: $49.99 after a mail-in rebate. That takes us a little by surprise given how the specifications of the device line-up against the other Windows Phone offerings available on Verizon, especially the Nokia Lumia 822. However, its 4-inch screen, slightly larger battery and overall shape make the ATIV Odyssey a little more pocketable, and that may find appeal with a number of consumers along with the Samsung name as well. Is the Samsung ATIV Odyssey on your list?
source: Verizon
Pebble finally starts shipping today, iOS app delayed a bit
The Pebble Bluetooth smartwatch is Kickstarter’s biggest success story raising over $10 million and now after months of waiting, it has finally started shipping to backers.
The first batch consists of 500 units, less than expected, but it’s still reassuring that the actual device is shipping. There are still some issues, but obviously not with the device itself but rather with the iOS app that will arrive later on as it is being modified to respond to Apple reviewers feedback. The lack of an app at launch means initially you won’t be able to install new watchfaces, but still you’d be able to use core functionality like notifications and music.
Good news is the Android application will arrive on the Google Play store just in a couple of days on January 24th.
The Pebble developers have even set up a website to track the status of your Pebble order which you can check out at the source link below.
source: Kickstarter
House of Marley Redemption Song On-Ear Headphones hands-on
The last time we checked out a pair of high-end House of Marley headphones, it was none other than the $300 priced Destiny Series model, which featured active noise-isolation technology to mute background noise and have you focused solely on the music. Obviously, not everyone is going to want to unload that amount to experience something so grand, therefore, if you’re in that exact boat, you might want to check out the House of Marley Redemption Song On-Ear Headphones instead.
Indeed, is $200 price point might still be perceived as excessive to some, but when Beats Audio headphones cost nearly the same, it’s not all that unconventional. Above all, we absolutely love the homemade look and feel of the Redemption Song headphones, as it employs earth-friendly materials such as recyclable aluminum, FSC certified beech wood, and durable canvas. In a world where futuristic industrial designs are rampant amongst on-ear headphones, it’s undeniably refreshing to find something that harkens back to something that looks as though fine labor and lots of love was put into its construction – instead of something that's churned out by a manufacturing line.
With its cushioned pads, they’re comfortable enough to put over our ears, but it can feel a bit irritating after an extensive amount of time due to the tight feel of the headphones. When it comes to audio quality, its 40mm dynamic moving coil speaker drive produces a frequency range of 15Hz – 22kHz, which essentially churns out some quality tones that don’t sound strained at all. Rather, it delivers some punchy tones that have a lot of bite to make the listening experience pleasant.
All in all, if you really want to stand out from the crowd, especially when those plasticy monster-type headphones are commonly used by people, the House of Marley Redemption Song On-Ear Headphones are a perfect fit – even at $200!
Apple reports Q1 2013 results: $54.5B revenue, sales of 47.8M iPhones and 22.9M iPads [UPDATED]
ios news Apple
UPDATE: Some other interesting details shared during Apple's earnings call:More than 500 million iOS devices sold to date, 10 iOS products sold per second in the last quarterThere are more than 2 billion iMessages sent every day, over 450 billion have been sent to dateOver 4 trillion notifications sent in Notification CenterOver 250 million iCloud accountsIn response to question about large-screened devices, Tim Cook said that he feels that Apple has the highest-quality display in the industry and that the 4-inch display on the iPhone 5 provides users with a bigger screen without sacrificing ease of use. Cook touched on recent supply rumors by saying that it's good to question the accuracy of any rumor about Apple's supply plans and that, even if a single data point were accurate, it wouldn't be a good proxy for what's going on with Apple's businessOn the subject of Maps, Cook simply said that Apple has made many improvements since the launch of iOS 6 in September and that the company will continue to make enhancements until Maps lives up to Apple's standards.More than 2 million Apple TVs were sold in the quarterVia Apple var Scribol; if (typeof Scribol == 'undefined') { Scribol = {}; Scribol.frames = []; Scribol.site = 'http://scribol.com/'; Scribol.is_preview = false; } Scribol.frames.push('2058772');
Alex is the Senior News Editor for PhoneDog. He digs mobile tech and just about every other kind of tech, too. He's also into cooking, sports, his two cats and drinking lots of coffee. - full profile
Earnings season continues today, and this time we've got Apple sharing its results for the first quarter of the fiscal 2013. The Cupertino firm today revealed that it made $54.5 billion in revenue for the quarter and a net profit of $13.1 billion, both of which are records for the company. To compare, Apple posted revenue of $46.3 billion and net profit of $13.1 billion in the year-ago quarter.
Apple also reports that it posted some record figures when it comes to device sales. The iPhone managed to reach sales of 47.8 million for the quarter, an increase of 11.8 million year over year and a jump of 20.9 million from Q4 2012. iPad sales finished at 22.9 million for the three-month period, which is a jump from the 15.4 million iPad sales in the year-ago quarter and the 14 million figure that Apple reported in Q4 2012. Sales of the Mac and iPod didn't go as well for Apple, with the firm moving 4.1 million Macs and 12.7 million iPods in the quarter, compared to 5.2 million Macs and 15.4 million iPods in the year-ago quarter.
Many folks were looking forward to seeing what kind of numbers Apple would put up for the fiscal Q1 2013, both because it marked the first full quarter of iPhone 5 availability and because of recent rumors that claimed that the company cut its iPhone 5 display orders due to weaker than expected demand. It looks like Apple did well for itself in the quarter, though, with CEO Tim Cook reporting that his firm sold over 75 million devices for the quarter. Apple will be hosting a conference call to discuss its Q1 2013 results at 4 p.m. ET. I'll be listening in and will update this article with any juicy tidbits that the Apple execs may drop. Did any of you contribute to these sales figures by getting a new iOS device or two over the holidays?UPDATE: Some other interesting details shared during Apple's earnings call:More than 500 million iOS devices sold to date, 10 iOS products sold per second in the last quarterThere are more than 2 billion iMessages sent every day, over 450 billion have been sent to dateOver 4 trillion notifications sent in Notification CenterOver 250 million iCloud accountsIn response to question about large-screened devices, Tim Cook said that he feels that Apple has the highest-quality display in the industry and that the 4-inch display on the iPhone 5 provides users with a bigger screen without sacrificing ease of use. Cook touched on recent supply rumors by saying that it's good to question the accuracy of any rumor about Apple's supply plans and that, even if a single data point were accurate, it wouldn't be a good proxy for what's going on with Apple's businessOn the subject of Maps, Cook simply said that Apple has made many improvements since the launch of iOS 6 in September and that the company will continue to make enhancements until Maps lives up to Apple's standards.More than 2 million Apple TVs were sold in the quarterVia Apple var Scribol; if (typeof Scribol == 'undefined') { Scribol = {}; Scribol.frames = []; Scribol.site = 'http://scribol.com/'; Scribol.is_preview = false; } Scribol.frames.push('2058772');
Microsoft patents Inconspicuous Mode to save us from ourselves
Action based on GPS location....check.Environmental ones....not sure. I dont use Smart Actions anymore. This MS thing might be like a combo of different apps, features. I think Samsung and other apps has something where the phone does something when its plced on its face.
Environmental checks would be a nice thing...
Motorola had 12-18 month product roadmap when purchased by Google
Earlier on Tuesday, we passed along to you the results of Google's Q4 earnings. Of course, when you think Google, you think Motorola and the latter hurt Google's bottom line by reporting an operating loss of $353 million dollars for the quarter. Google profited to the tune of $2.89 billion in the quarter. This could go on for some time according to Google Senior VP and Chief Financial Officer Patrick Pichette. During the fourth quarter earnings call, the executive repeated that when Google purchased Motorola, it inherited 12-18 months of products that were promised to buyers. Fulfilling this roadmap could continue to bring red ink Moto's way, but there really is nothing Google can do until all prior obligations are met. While Google has only had 6 months since closing the deal, it takes time for these charges to work through the system. The amount of red ink that Motorola produces is not large enough to affect Google's stock although Pichette says that Google aims to make money with Motorola. The upcoming Motorola X will be an important indication of what Google and Motorola can produce together. Motorola has made no secret that this will be the first Motorola phone that lets everyone know who Moto's daddy is.
The last time Motorola and Google worked so closely on a smartphone might have been the Motorola DROID which was the first Android model to launch with Android 2.0. You might recall that the OG Motorola DROID came with stock Android. The . To reiterate the speculation we passed along on Monday, the Motorola X is expected to be introduced at Google I/O in May. Speculation calls for a July 8th launch of the phone at a price of $299 on contract from Verizon while the model will also be offered unlocked and off-contract at the Google Play Store. The Motorola X will also be offered by other U.S. carriers.
source: AndroidCentral
Ubuntu Phone's 12 default apps will be "community created"
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Samsung's H1 roadmap leaks with full Galaxy Note 8.0 specs, confirms Galaxy Xcover 2 and more
Are you dumb?Ipad mini has 4490
Nexus 7 has about 4300The battery life on nexus 7 is plenty. And let me remind you that stock android (which runs on n7) have worse battery life than OEM modified roms.
Apple pulls 500px app from App Store, accuses it of allowing too easy access to porn
500px is one of our favorite photography applications - a simply and beautifully designed app for photographers and enthusiasts, but also a community, it was suddenly pulled out of the Apple App Store for allegedly allowing easy access to pornographic images.
Now, we can understand Apple pulling the app immediately (if it didn’t and child pornography was found, that could be considered grounds for a lawsuit), but it’s strange that it did so with this exact application that has obviously been there for a long while. Pornographic content is of course not far from the reach via browsers as well, and here we’re not even talking about ‘pornographic’ images per se.
Here is the official explanation by Cupertino:
“The app was removed from the App Store for featuring pornographic images and material, a clear violation of our guidelines. We also received customer complaints about possible child pornography. We've asked the developer to put safeguards in place to prevent pornographic images and material in their app.”
Those are some heavy accusations from Apple, especially given the fact that 500px has never hosted purely pornographic pictures, and the nude images that are hosted are always artistic in nature, not vulgar in any way.
“We don’t allow pornographic images. If something is purely pornographic, it’s against our terms and it’s deleted,” 500px COO Evgeny Tchebotarev notes.
It is true, though, that through the search function one can find nude images in 500px. The service relies on its users to flag inappropriate images, but in addition it also has a very clear and enabled by default opt-out policy for nude images.
However, what makes Apple’s move particularly weird is the fact that the 500px app was on the App Store for nearly 16 months staying with virtually the same functionality from the get go. The app was only updated in November with a prettier UI but no other changes.
Here is the developer’s official response:
Now, we can understand Apple pulling the app immediately (if it didn’t and child pornography was found, that could be considered grounds for a lawsuit), but it’s strange that it did so with this exact application that has obviously been there for a long while. Pornographic content is of course not far from the reach via browsers as well, and here we’re not even talking about ‘pornographic’ images per se.
The 500px app should be back in a couple of days, but we are once again seeing Apple’s walled garden approach. The app is still freely available on the Google Play store. Question remains, though, is Apple's decision good for developers and users? We’ll let you sound off your thoughts in the comments below.
source: Tech Crunch
Nokia Drive+ now available for ALL Windows Phone 8 users
Now this is a treat, Microsoft and Nokia have opened up the beta of Nokia Drive+ to all Windows Phone 8 users. The outstanding turn-by-turn navigation application is free and available now in the Windows Phone Store.
The app has been in beta for some time while Nokia polishes things up, despite that, it is one of the best turn-by-turn navigation applications available, on any platform. Nokia Drive+ has been part of the “Nokia Experience,” exclusive to the Finnish manufacturer’s hardware.
Nokia has quietly been making huge inroads since its acquisition of NAVTEQ and this is one of the first widespread fruits of that labor. It was known for some time that Nokia would be providing "mapping abilities" to all Windows Phone 8 handsets as part of the technology sharing agreement between Nokia and Microsoft, but it was not immediately known how that would be implemented.
The application is now available for users in the United States, United Kingdom and Canada. It boasts all the expected features you would want in a high-end GPS app, plus the ability to download maps for offline use. This is a great development for all Windows Phone 8 users. For those of us that have used it, we can say that the rest of the Windows Phone user base is in for a great experience. You can download Nokia Drive+ here.
sources: Windows Phone Blog via WinSuperSite.com
Research group claims LG overtook Apple as #2 US handset maker in December
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Spigen iPhone 5 Ultra Flip Case hands-on
Expanding their line of cases for the iPhone 5, which is quite extensive right now to say the least, Spigen is now offering owners something similar to the flip covers that have been featured with Sammy’s line of smartphones of late. With the Spigen iPhone 5 Ultra Flip Case, you get that professional look to make you seem all business savvy from afar.
So what’s to like about this one? For starters, the case employs a two-tone diagonal stripe pattern that has a plasticy feel and a clean finish. It’s not bulky at all, thankfully enough, but it would’ve been nice to have some kind of magnetic connection or a latch to secure the front cover when it’s close. Instead, it simply dangles if you don’t clasp the handset with your own hands.
Regardless of that, we appreciate that there’s a slit in the front cover so there’s no interfering with phone calls. On top of that, the inner portion of the front cover is lined with soft micro fiber chamude so that it protects (and cleans) the display. Interestingly enough, there’s a slit also running down the inner cover as well, which seems as though it can accommodate a card of some kind – whether it’s a credit card or ID.
Naturally, not everyone is going to want a flip cover with their iPhone 5, but if you do, the Spigen Ultra Flip Case for the iPhone 5 is something to think about – though, its $37.99 price might be steep for some people.
Samsung rolling out Android 4.1.2 update for the legendary Galaxy S II
The Samsung Galaxy S II, also known as the geeks' champ, will soon get updated to Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean! Samsung has reportedly initiated the roll-out process in Spain, so other countries are expected to start receiving the update soon.
Thankfully, this update will bring the new TouchWiz Nature UI to the GS II. Until now, the handset was stuck with Samsung's old version of TouchWiz, which was much less appealing. The new software will not only look considerably better, but will also introduce some cool features like Smart Stay - the ability of the front-facing camera to detect if you are looking at the screen in order to determine whether to allow the handset to go to sleep mode or keep the display on.
Another major benefit of the Jelly Bean update will be Project Butter - a set of performance improvements that will make the interface noticeably faster and smoother.
Are there any PhoneArena readers left who are still rocking a Galaxy S II?via: SammyHub
Innovative App: Little Lost Sheep – Combines Real-World And Digital Play
Cupertino, California – Apps For All launches their latest app: Little Lost Sheep 1.0. Parents together with their toddler can use their iOS device to play hide-and-seek to find a digital lost sheep. It’s a simple game: the toddler is the shepherd who has to close his or her eyes tight. Then the parent will hide the iPhone somewhere in the room. In a shoe, under a seat, in the dollhouse, anywhere!
Once the device has not moved for three seconds, the screen will go black and the phone ‘transforms’ into a Little Lost Sheep. This virtual sheep will call for help every 5 to 10 seconds. Now the shepherd can start their search; they can hear the sheep, but not see it! Using only their ears the shepherd must then continue to search for the sheep, then once found it’s time for a party because the herd is complete again!
Little Lost Sheep has been specifically developed for toddlers and gives consideration to specific constraints to ensure a healthy and fun experience that also aids their development. Toddlers can’t read, their attention span is very short and, as most parents will agree upon, they should not sit behind a (big or small) screen for too long. Little Lost Sheep’s innovative mix of real-world and digital gameplay takes this into account in a very friendly and engaging app.
Little Lost Sheep is a game for toddlers, with which they cannot and must not sit still. The app can be played where-ever the iPhone goes, so new hiding places are endless. Therefore Little Lost Sheep will become ‘new’ for the little ones over-and-over again. The app can of course also be played by two (or more) kids, whilst toddler and parent can even switch roles – to the child’s delight when the adult cannot find a well hidden sheep.
Until now, Apps For All have focussed on small and boring utilities like address book cleaners and small photo editors. Lead developer Wim de Nood explains the shift towards Little Lost Sheep: “The simple truth is that the idea for the app came to life when my 3-year old daughter asked me, with that angelic smile, to ‘pleeease’ make her an app. How could I refuse?”
Little Lost Sheep, the interactive “hide-and-seek” style game that will bring a smile to both parents and children, is available now in the App Store.
Language Support:
English and Dutch
Device Requirements:
* iPhone 3GS/4/4S/5, iPod touch (3rd/4th/5th generation), and iPad
* Requires iOS 5.0 or later
* 5.9 MB
Pricing and Availability:
Little Lost Sheep 1.0 is only $0.99 USD (or equivalent amount in other currencies) and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Games category.
Based in Tilburg, Netherlands and founded in 2012, Apps For All already boast a portfolio of over 20 apps which have been downloaded nearly 1 million times worldwide. Specializing in productivity and utility applications which fill gaps for both iPhone and iPad, Apps For All also keep their offerings fresh with occasional releases in the game and fun tool genres. Copyright (C) 2013 Apps For All. All Rights Reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone, iPod and iPad are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries.
Angry Space Mole – Asteroid Dodge
London, United Kingdom – Angry Space Mole 1.0 is the next in the Angry Moles series from indie developers Awesome App Lab. A simple fun game that’s highly addictive.
The game is based around the main character, Minko The Super Mole. He is trying to outrun his enemies by flying through an asteroid field and its down to you to get him through safely. All you have to do it tilt your device from side to side to guide him. This game is now free for a while as we have big social network update on the way which will enable player to compete again online friends.
The feedback has been great so far the Angry Space Mole now has a five star average rating in the UK and USA. It even broke into the top 300 games. This is just the beginning for this game and there are loads of levels and charters on the way.
The Angry Moles series is becoming really popular and Awesome App Lab have a number of new adventures on the way. Player feedback is playing a huge part in the development of the series. Check out the latest in the series while its free. All feedback welcome and your ideas might just make it into the game.
Device Requirements:
* iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch
* Requires iOS 6.0 or later
* 2.9 MB
Pricing and Availability:
Angry Space Mole 1.0 is free and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Games category.
Located in London, United Kingdom, Awesome App Lab is a small indie development company founded by Brett Wash in 2012. The team focuses on developing fun mobile apps. Copyright (C) 2012 Awesome App Lab. All Rights Reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone, iPod and iPad are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries.
Old School Launches on iTunes
London, Canada – Today, Big Blue Bubble announced that Old School Defense 1.0, a tower defense game based on the Paramount movie, Old School, is now available on the iTunes App Store.
Old School Defense is a humorous, pick-up-and-play tower defense game that offers simple to complex gameplay for all ages. Progressing through increasing levels of difficulty, each player is challenged to protect their frat house and beer from Party Crashers and the nefarious Dean by strategically placing pledges and generating resources.
Old School is developed by Big Blue Bubble, and is a universal app, available for $0.99 from the iTunes App Store. Old School Defense was made possible by AppBackr.
Final words: “You’re my boy Blue! You’re my boy…”
Feature Highlights:
* Pledges with names you will remember from the movie
* Exciting upgrades for each pledge
* Go streaking
* Levels named by backrs
* Survival and campaign modes
* 30+ challenging maps with different levels of invader waves
About Paramount Pictures Corporation:
Paramount Pictures Corporation (PPC), a global producer and distributor of filmed entertainment, is a unit of Viacom (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB), a leading content company with prominent and respected film, television and digital entertainment brands. Paramount controls a collection of some of the most powerful brands in filmed entertainment, including Paramount Pictures, Paramount Animation, Paramount Vantage, Paramount Classics, Insurge Pictures, MTV Films, and Nickelodeon Movies. PPC operations also include Paramount Famous Productions, Paramount Home Media Distribution, Paramount Pictures International, Paramount Licensing Inc., and Paramount Studio Group.
Language Support:
English, French, German, Italian, Spanish
Device Requirements:
* iPhone 3GS/4/4S/5, iPod touch (3rd/4th/5th generation), and iPad
* Requires iOS 4.3 or later
* Universal app optimized for display on all iOS devices
* 10.8 MB
Pricing and Availability:
Old School Defense 1.0 is only $0.99 USD (or equivalent amount in other currencies) and available worldwide through the App Store in the Games category. Old School is also available on Google Play.
With over 100 high profile games in its portfolio, Big Blue Bubble Inc. is one of Canada’s leading video game developers. Big Blue Bubble is dedicated to making the best possible games by combining innovative designers with top caliber artists and industry leading programmers. By maintaining a strong focus on the development of technology and showcasing it through award winning games, Big Blue Bubble will continue to lead the way in becoming a cornerstone of the gaming world. Copyright (C) 2011-2013 Big Blue Bubble Inc. All Rights Reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone, iPod and iPad are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries.
Five of the top six mobile apps in the U.S. during December, were from Google
Metrics firm comScore recently charted the top ten mobile apps in the U.S. for December, based on the number of unique visitors. The result? Five out of the top six names were produced by Google. Actually, the number one app is the one that is non-Google as Facebook led the way with 85.5 million unique visitors for the month. Google Maps was second with 74.6 million unique visitors during December. Google Play was next (61.5 million unique visitors), followed by Google Search, Gmail and YouTube. Those three had 60.6 million, 53.9 million and 52.6 million unique visitors in December, respectively. Rounding out the top ten is Pandora Radio, Apple iTunes, Cooliris and Yahoo! Messenger. Apple removed YouTube and Google Maps from iOS 6 and that decision shows up in the chart comparing the number of unique visitors monthly for both the Facebook app and Google Maps. You can see how Google Maps fell behind Facebook at the same time the former app was removed from iOS 6.
Another chart shows that the Facebook app is more "sticky" than Google's mobile apps in the U.S. In other words, users spent more time using the social networking site's app, which actually accounted for 23% of the time U.S. mobile device users spent using apps in December. Facebook owned Instagram accounts for another 3%. Last month, U.S. app users spent 10% of their time using apps from Google. Combined, one of every 3 minutes U.S. mobile device users spent using an app in December was on an app created by Facebook or Google. The numbers that comScore used were from U.S. based iOS and Android users 18 and older, during December.
source: comScore via BGR
Look out below! Apple is down $55 after-hours as earnings disappoint
After closing at $514.01 in regular trading, Apple's earnings have shocked the investment community and the stock is now trading after-hours at about $459 for a better than 10% decline. And yet, you will read that Apple set records for quarterly revenue, quarterly earnings, the number of Apple iPhones sold and the number of Apple iPads sold. Where did the company go wrong?
One major area that analysts were not happy with was Apple's gross margins, which dropped to 38.6% from the 44.7% recorded last year. The average price Apple recorded for each Apple iPhone sold was $641.57, close to last year's number. But the average price received per iPad sold dropped from $568.16 in the 2012 quarter, to $469.93. That is the result of adding the lower priced Apple iPad mini. One margins start declining, they tend to continue dropping. This one piece of data alone should scare Apple as it shows that Android tablets are beginning to take share away from the iPad.
Maybe Apple executives don't get it. Tim Cook said during the conference call that the Apple iPhone 4 was "in constraint" during the entire quarter. But this is the lowest priced smartphone in Apple's lineup and is offered free with a two-year contract by some carriers. This lowers margins and reduces the average price of sold iPhones. Cook was making this sound like a positive when frankly, it is the kind of thing that Apple investors fear. This quarter could give the suits in Cupertino a reason not to produce a low priced version of the Apple iPhone as it would bring margins down even more.Apple could nip this in the bud by using some of the $137 billion in cash it has, to buy back a chunk of stock. The best way Apple can do this and achieve the results they want would be to buy a percentage of the stock outstanding at a premium in a tender offer. This would have much more of an impact than merely buying shares in the open market from time to time.
We're not sure what will change the current feelings about Apple. we've pointed out over the last few weeks how there is a malaise surrounding the company and there is the question if Apple has lost its edge. Something has changed and as Bob Dylan once sang, "You don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows." Apple sold a record number of Apple iPhones and Apple iPads and still can't please the investment community. The best thing that Tim Cook can do is to blow up current plans for things like a low-priced Apple iPhone and even put talks with China Mobile on the backburner. Apple has always been a company producing innovative new products and different variations of the iPhone is not innovation. Selling more of the device in China is not innovation. It is time for Cupertino to put the ol' thinking cap on and wow us with something new.
source: Bloomberg, WSJ ,
Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 might cost $250-$300, affordable 7-incher to arrive for $150-$200
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Can your tablet survive a whole night at -13° F?
The listed operating and nonoperating temperatures for a device are important specs that we should all have in mind. Especially those of us who happen to live in areas where it tends to get extremely hot or extremely cold in certain periods of the year. Sure, our devices are capable of remaining perfectly operational inside a pretty wide temperature range, so in most cases there isn't even the slightest reason to worry.
However, this wasn't the case for BerryReview's 'BBA Brian', who accidentally forgot his RIM BlackBerry PlayBook tablet on the roof of his car when he got home from work. The tablet remained there for the whole night. Brian's panic on the following morning could be easily explained with the fact that he's living in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada, where, at this time of the year, temperatures get to about -13° F (-25° C) during the night. Thankfully, when he found it the next day, the PlayBook managed to power up just fine (it seems the tablet was turned off, which has probably saved it), with no signs of malfunction. This should be considered quite the achievement (and luck), because...
According to the PlayBook's manual, the device should be kept (when in powered off state) in temperatures ranging from 14 to 104° F (-10 to 40° C), which is an even narrower range compared to the one of the iPad, for example: -4° to 113° F (-20° to 45° C). Even then, Brian's PlayBook managed to survive the cold against all odds and was ready to power up happily on the next morning. Well, good to know that our mobile devices (or at least some of them) don't fear cold like we do.
source: BerryReview
Enter to Win an iPhone 5 by Getting Pregnant Instantly with PreggoBooth!
Charlotte, North Carolina – Ever wonder what you would look like pregnant? Well here is your chance to find out and enter to win an iPhone 5! Introducing the new PreggoBooth 1.6 iPhone 5 contest that makes it even better to ready, set, Preggo!
Five easy steps to participate in the Contest:
1. Register at PreggoBooth Contest Page
2. Like the PreggoBooth facebook page or Follow @PreggoBooth twitter handle
3. Use the PreggoBooth App with your own picture or just play a prank on your buddy
4. Share your picture from within the app on Facebook (making sure you tag PreggoBooth) and Twitter (and include #PreggoBooth)
5. Ask all your friends to “like”, “comment”, “share” and “retweet”; more actions from your friends will mean more chances for you to win
The contest ends on February 8th, so start sharing today!
PreggoBooth is the world’s first pregnancy simulation application and has become to must have app at any party, office, or family event! PreggoBooth transforms you into an expecting mommy (or daddy) in just a few swipes. Watch how your bum, boobs, and belly transform in three, six, and even nine months. This app is great for the prankster in all of us…you can even try it out on your male boss, professor, teacher or friend and fantasize about him going on a paternal holiday!
“At We Made It LLC, we’re serious about fun.” says Co-Founder Shaun Abraham. “We strive to create entertaining personal apps that you can share with your friends and family. PreggoBooth brings exceptional body-imaging technology to your fingertips with the convenience of uploading your transformed photo to your social network or e-mail to friends.”
Feature Highlights:
* Works with iPod touch or iPhone (Android, Windows Phone, and BlackBerry coming soon)
* Choose existing photos or snap new ones directly from iPhone/iPod touch
* NEW choose-to-morph feature allows you to control what parts grow: bum, boobs, or belly
* Swipe feature allows for easy navigation through three, six and nine months
* Instantly share with your friends on Facebook, Twitter, or via email
Disclaimer:
PreggoBooth is made solely for entertainment purposes and does not guarantee a resemblance to the real pregnancy process.
Device Requirements:
* iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad
* Requires iOS 4.0 or later
* 7.8 MB
Pricing and Availability:
PreggoBooth is available for $0.99 USD through the App Store in the Entertainment category.
WeMadeIt Apps (WMI) was formed with a vision of developing world class future-proof mobile software solutions. PreggoBooth, the first of a series of entertainment applications, delivers a uniquely enjoyable experience simulating how a person would look at various stages of pregnancy. Behind the fun shell of PreggoBooth is an image recognition and distortion technology that serves as the basis for commercial applications that are currently in development. As a firm, WMI is diligently working to deliver on our vision. We have much more in store, so please stay tuned. Copyright (C) 2013 WeMadeIt Apps. All Rights Reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone, iPod and iPad are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries.
My Baby Blog Lets Parents Capture their Baby’s Precious Moments
Cupertino, California – Father and mothers-to-be, along with parents of young children, can now capture their baby’s precious moments – and safeguard priceless memories – thanks to the innovative new app My Baby Blog 1.0 from Treecrest Limited.
Optimized for iPhone 5 and compatible with iPad and iPod touch, My Baby Blog lets parents easily record their baby’s life in photos and narrative, from birth all the way through to their first day at school.
My Baby Blog’s special features include:
* A simple and easy-to-use interface that anyone can use
* Pre-loaded events that can be added or deleted as desired, such “first Christmas”, “first vacation”, “first smile”, “first words” and many more
* A handy weight and height tracker for the baby’s first year, which can be viewed as a graph
* A section to store the baby’s health information and immunization records
Plus, since there’s no limit to the number of babies that can be featured, parents can use the app for their entire family vs. having to download and purchase a new app for each child.
“As any parent will tell you, the first years of a baby’s life go by incredibly fast,” commented Tony Malone of Treecrest Limited. “Before you know it, they’re off to school and ready to take on the world! And aside from some traditional photos and perhaps some video, there often isn’t much to reflect upon. My Baby Blog makes it fun and easy to capture these priceless moments, and share them with family and friends now, and for decades to come.”
My Baby Blog, the innovative new app that lets fathers and mothers-to-be, along with parents of young children, capture their baby’s precious memories and safeguard priceless memories is available now on iTunes.
Device Requirements:
* iPhone 3GS/4/4S/5, iPod touch (3rd/4th/5th generation), and iPad
* Requires iOS 5.0 or later
* Universal app optimized for display on all iOS devices
* 1.3 MB
Pricing and Availability:
My Baby Blog 1.0 is $2.99 USD (or equivalent amount in other currencies) and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Lifestyle category.
Treecrest Limited is an IT Consultancy incorporated in 1998. In the early years, the main focus of the business was to provide IT Consultancy and Application Development for International Banks. More recently, the company has branched into the area of iOS Application Development. Copyright (C) 2013 Treecrest Limited. All Rights Reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone, iPod and iPad are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries.
Apple reports record profits, sells 47 million Apple iPhones in fiscal first quarter
Apple enjoyed quite a strong fiscal first quarter as it reported record revenue of $54.5 billion and profit of $13.1 billion, also a company record. It all works out to profits of $13.81 a diluted share for the tech giant. Last year, the company reported revenue of $46.3 billion and profits of $13.1 billion in last year's fiscal first quarter. Gross margin, at 38.6% dropped from last year's 44.7%, possibly due to the lower priced Apple iPad mini and higher sales of legacy iPhone models. 61% of revenue were from international sales. Apple sold a record 47.8 million units of the Apple iPhone in the quarter, compared to 37 million sold last year. 22.9 million Apple iPads were sold in the period which ended last month, compared to 15.4 million sold last year. The number of tablets sold in the quarter was also a new record for the Cupertino based tech titan. Apple also declared a quarterly dividend of $2.65 per share, payable on February 14th.
source: CNBC
For the second quarter, Apple says it is looking to report revenue between $41 billion and $43 billion, gross margin between 37.5% and 38.5% and a tax rate of 26%. Investors seem not too happy with the gross margin figures as Apple stock is down $15 after-hours to $499.
source: CNBC
Microsoft Surface Windows 8 Pro debuts in video
Microsoft focuses on productivity and wants you to “do more” with the Surface Windows 8 Pro tablet which will be available on February 9th.
Microsoft provides a light overview of the Surface Windows 8 Pro. The form factor will be familiar to anyone that has seen or handled a Surface running Windows RT. The big differentiators between the tablets are that the Pro runs the full version of Windows 8 allowing you to run legacy applications, has an Intel i5 processor, a bit more RAM and more storage. The Pro also has a higher resolution 1920x1080 screen, bigger battery, and is a little heavier at just about 2 pounds.
The Surface Pro also comes with a stylus as part of the package, using Penabled technology by Wacom which allows the Surface to ignore your hand pressing against the screen when using the stylus for writing. One thing we do not see in the video is anywhere to stow the stylus in the tablet, which may concern some folks that have a propensity to lose things. However it is a full sized instrument, like a regular pen, so it will fit in your pocket protector just fine.
The Surface Windows 8 Pro can use the same Touch Cover or Type Cover, the former coming in all sorts of colors and limited edition styles, as the Surface RT. For those that have been waiting for the full Windows 8 experience in that sleek magnesium chassis, the time is coming soon. Are you going to pick up a Surface Windows 8 Pro?
source: Microsoft (YouTube) via WPCentral
How many different mobile devices do you use each day?
android iphone os polls tablets windows phone 8
Taylor Martin is the Managing Editor for PhoneDog and has over six years of experience with BlackBerry and two or more years of hands-on experience with mobile platforms like Android, webOS, and iOS. When he isn't writing into the wee hours of the morning, Taylor is hacking, tweaking, and modding one of his phones or tablets to do his laundry and cook his breakfast. Away from cell phones and other gadgets, Taylor spends his time with friends and... - full profile
As we strive to have a single device that does it all, no mobile device can … yet. So many of us have found comfort in using multiple devices to get the job done. With every generation, though, mobile devices become more powerful and, likewise, more capable. And I, personally, have recently decided I want to trim down the number of devices I use each day.
Right now, I use one tablet and two smartphones daily: an iPhone 5, Galaxy Note II and a third-generation iPad. This is a step down from just a few months ago where, like in the picture above, I used two or three phones and two tablets every day. But I'm looking to cut that back even further, likely to one phone and a single, mid-sized tablet with 4G connectivity.
Tell me, readers, how many devices you use on a daily basis. Do you wish you used more? Less? Place your vote in our poll below and tell us in the comments what your ideal setup would be.
var Scribol; if (typeof Scribol == 'undefined') { Scribol = {}; Scribol.frames = []; Scribol.site = 'http://scribol.com/'; Scribol.is_preview = false; } Scribol.frames.push('2058772');BlackBerry World music and video rolling out in the "coming weeks"
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Sorry, I could not read the content fromt this page.Molly Ringwald's new phone? Motorola DROID RAZR M goes pink on January 24th
The youth of the 1980's were usually summed up quite well in John Hughes' movies. Hits like Pretty in Pink gave us some of the best young actors of the period such as Molly Ringwald (who could forget her brief role in The Facts of Life), Jon Cryer (who makes millions as Alan Harper on Two and a Half Men) and James Spader. Of course, back then there were no smartphones with hundreds of thousands of apps and Pac Man was about as high tech as things got for kids. What takes us through the recesses of our mind back to the 80's has nothing to do with jOBS, or even John Sculley. Nor does it have to with the $12 price that Apple was trading for back then. Actually, it has nothing to do at all with Apple. It is all about the pink version of the Motorola DROID RAZR M which is coming to Big Pink Red Thursday. You will find it online and at the stores priced at $99.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate.
If you're tired of giving your sweetie a box of chocolates for Valentine's Day, why not give your SO a pink Motorola DROID RAZR M? There's is much more here than a box of Whitmans, like the 4.3 inch edge-to-edge screen and the dual-core 1.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Plus. And unlike the chocolate, the DROID RAZR M isn't fattening.
source: Verizon via AndroidCentral
Use this magical app to get rid of all lag in your Android device
Sure, the newest upper-mid and high-end Android smartphones have little to no problem delivering a perfectly fluid software experience, but we shouldn't forget that there are still some modestly-spec'd handsets out there that don't have access to such abundant system resources. Sometimes, this lack of resources may be the cause for an unresponsive UI or simply a great deal of lag throughout the system, which, as we all know, may piss off even the most even tempered people out there. That's why imaginatively-named developer Grilled Monkey has decided to bring a new app to the Play store, called LagFix, which attempts to remedy this situation.
LagFix (fstrim), as is the full name of this geeky piece of software, is based on the Fstrim Linux tool, which has the same purpose. Basically, when the user is trying to execute a task, the LagFix app attempts to inform the device's memory controller about the free storage blocks that can be used to write data on at the current moment. Alternatively, in the typical case (which is when you don't have LagFix installed), the memory controller has to "ask" the system about the free storage blocks, and the whole system stops responding for a while (usually less than a second) until the memory controller gets its "answer". So that's how the tool is supposed to work, but will it really work for you? Well, you'll really have to try it on your specific device in order to be sure, but as it seems most of the users who have tried it are very pleased with the results they have achieved.
If you are experiencing problems with the lag, and wish to give LagFix a try, you can download it here!
via: AndroidCentral
Upcoming Mailbox app for iPhone will have a waitlist due to huge demand
By looking at email as an “ancient” medium, Orchestra is just about to transform how we use email with a highly anticipated app.
You may have heard of Orchestra, Inc. They are the developers behind the highly rated “Orchestra To-do” app for the iPhone. The story behind that application grew from the company’s observations that many of us use our email as to-do lists. The problem is that most email interfaces, especially the ones on smartphones, are not very good at organizing or being to-do lists.
The company embarked on transforming the medium of email into something far more useful, and from the looks of what has been worked on, Mailbox is going to be a runaway success. It is a mobile-first email experience, rather than a desktop experience on a handset. When you see the video below, you will understand. Mailbox will be available for the iPhone and Gmail “soon.”
Response to this concept has been overwhelming, as a result, the company has set-up a reservation system so Orchestra can scale the rollout without “because this is email and email has to be reliable.” To achieve this, the reservation system Orchestra has set up is really simple, just provide your phone number and the company will text you a reservation number and you will be notified when you can begin using the Mailbox application.
Mailbox compresses data and is said to provide super-quick push notifications as well as make it easier to actually clear out all your email. You can reserve your space in line through the source link below. When was the last time your email inbox was empty?
sources: Orchestra via The Verge
Color Wisdom Cards Empowers People to Tap into their Intuitive Power
Cupertino, California – Noted author, psychic and color expert Tori Hartman has created an inspiring and unique app Color Wisdom Cards 1.2.3, which is designed to help people develop their intuition, make wise decisions, and create their dream life.
The inspiration for Color Wisdom Cards comes from over 45 spirits who visited her shortly after her near death experience over 25 years ago. The spirits shared with her a unique series of fables, and conveyed them in Chakra colors.
Over the next two decades, Tori pieced together the clues of these esoteric fables, which resulted in the Color Wisdom Cards: a card deck that works as a divination tool and meditation aid to help people clear life blocks, learn Multi-Generational Healing, and empower themselves and others.
Color Wisdom Cards features a deck of 51 cards divided into the 7 Chakra color sections, which have: red, orange, yellow, green, purple and neutral. App users can browse the entire deck to experience a full, transformative journey, or select the random shuffle to select a single card and divine a profound answer to a direct question.
“A single card reading is an amazing way to focus energy on something specific,” says Tori. “One card can be a theme for the day, week, month or even an entire year.”
Each individual Color Wisdom Card features:
* A full-color illustration of the spirit, which can be viewed in stunning fullscreen on iPad
* A definition of the color, which offers powerful inspiration and insight
* The original color-based fable as it was revealed to Ms. Hartman
* An inspirational insight to connect the card to current life situations
* A meditation to create a deep connection with the cards’ message, and also includes the MP3 of the meditation read by the author
* A “Connect with Others” section for every card, which is a perfect tool for any Mastermind group
* A “Connect with Yourself” section for each card that offers a powerful journaling exercise to assist in developing one’s intuition
People who want to tap into their intuitive power and create their dream life can now download Color Wisdom Cards from the App Store.
Language Support:
English and Japanese
Device Requirements:
* iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch
* Requires iOS 4.0 or later
* Universal app optimized for display on all iOS devices
* 107 MB
Pricing and Availability:
Color Wisdom Cards 1.2.3 is $4.99 USD (or equivalent amount in other currencies) and available worldwide through the App Store in the Lifestyle category. Color Wisdom Cards is also available for Android via Google Play and for Nook via the Barnes & Noble Nook store.
Tori Hartman is a renowned psychic and entrepreneur. She is the only psychic ever interviewed by The New York Times and L.A. Business Journal. She has celebrity clientele, a radio show, a spiritual club, a line of jewelry, a book and as if all of these accomplishments were not enough – Tori Hartman has just introduced an Oracle Deck called Color Wisdom Cards. Tori Hartman grew up in Greenwich Village, New York. Growing up, Tori often had lunch with celebrated chef (and neighbor) James Beard. For over a decade now Tori Hartman has been promoting empowerment of individuals along with acceptance of their intuition to make decisions. Always a practitioner of love and healing before money, Hartman’s success has flourished. Copyright (C) 2013 Tori Hartman. All Rights Reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone, iPod and iPad are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries.
Join the club: Foxconn shares drop 4% after it warns of red ink for 2012
Apple isn't the only company whose stock is being taken out back and shot after making a pronouncement about earnings. Apple's stock is down close to 10% after the tech giant reported its fiscal first quarter earnings. The company that assembles the vast majority of Apple's mobile devices, Foxconn, saw its shares drop 4% in Hong Kong on Thursday after the contract manufacturer said that low demand from its clients will result in a net loss for 2012. Foxconn lost $226.07 million in its first half, the worst showing it ever had in the period. Foxconn expects its second half loss to be smaller than the loss it reported in the first half. But the red ink it will spill for the whole year will be the first annual loss for Foxconn since 2010. That year, Nokia started losing market share which hurt Foxconn's business.
source: Reuters
This past fourth quarter, shares of Foxconn rallied after speculation that Foxconn parent Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. would pass some of its Apple iPhone assembly business to the contract manufacturer. This was never confirmed by Foxconn or Hon Hai and Nomura analyst Aaron Jeng said, "We believe the speculation on Hon Hai's Apple order transfer was overdone." Another analyst, Barclays' Dale Gai, said any positive contribution from Apple would be delayed until the second half of 2013.
source: Reuters
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
New stunning 3D game for Android will let you fight for all the oil you can get
Developer Unigine Corp. has just announced that it will be bringing a new game to Android, called Oil Rush 3D. This naval strategy game utilizes Unigine Corp.'s own Unigine 3D engine and we have to say that it looks spectacularly well. Probably better than anything we've seen for mobile thus far. Oil Rush 3D for Android will be available starting in February, but it will be exclusive to devices equipped with Qualcomm's Snapdragon S4 chipsets for the first six months following the release. Actually, the exact supported chipsets seem to be the MSM8960, APQ8064 and MPQ8064. Congrats to those whose smartphones feature one of these.
Apart from next-gen visuals, Oil Rush 3D will also attempt to deliver a lengthy campaign with an engaging storyline, skirmish mode versus up to three AI opponents, varied environments, a tech tree, many different unit types and more. Being a strategy game, though, we feel that Oil Rush 3D will be best played on a tablet, since the on-screen controls and info, although being specifically optimied for touch, may prove to be a bit uncomfortable to use on a small screen. Just saying.
For those who don't happen to own a device with a Snapdragon S4 chipset of one of the above-mentioned times - don't sweat it, if you like the game you can get it for Windows, Linux or Max OS X right now.
What do you think, guys, isn't this one a beauty?
Here's some gameplay footage from the PC version of the game. The mobile version should be extremely similar.
source: Unigine
Press Release Oil Rush 3D mobile strategy game is announced for Android
UNIGINE Corp. announced that Oil Rush, an epic naval strategy game, is coming in February to Android devices based on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon S4 chip. The game - as well as a free demo - will hit the Google Play store and bring next-generation 3D graphics, hardcore depth and touch-native controls for mobile users. It is based on the proprietary multi-platform UNIGINE Engine and developed by UNIGINE Corp.
Oil Rush for mobile invites players to smash through raging waves of enemies while experiencing a thrilling story of apocalypse, technology, and battles that players have been enjoying on Windows, Linux and Mac OS X since the game's release in January 2012. Originally designed with touchscreen controls in mind, Oil Rush features unique gameplay that is native for the mobile platform and is based on group control. It avoids micromanagement of every single unit, offering strategic depth and focusing on fast-paced and swift attacks, smart defensive tactics, and development of a rich technology tree.
"Oil Rush is an exciting development because not only we provide a game that, I'd say, approved for the hardcore audience, but also because we expand the popular strategy genre to the Android market," commented Denis Shergin, CEO of UNIGINE Corp.
Key Features
Stunning 3D graphics, a next step for mobile gaming visualsVaried environments in a flooded post-apocalyptic world, from the tropics to the AntarcticWide range of mission types to create a gripping experienceStrategic depth due to multi-level upgrade options and a balanced technology treeQuick game mode for battles with up to three AI opponentsLong, full-featured campaign packed with challenging, story-based missionsOil Rush will unleash the full potential of cutting-edge and flexible UNIGINE technology for flagship smartphones and tablets. For six months following release, the game will be available for Android mobile devices powered by the latest Snapdragon S4 chips (MSM8960, APQ8064 and MPQ8064), including Samsung Galaxy S III LTE, Motorola RAZR M, Google Nexus 4 and Lenovo IdeaPad, among others. Besides Android, the technical excellence of UNIGNE Engine, an all-in-one middleware, is available for a wide range of other platforms, such as Windows, Linux, Mac, iOS and PS3.
About UNIGINE Corp.
UNIGINE Corp. is an international company focused on real-time 3D technologies development. Over 7 years on the market, the company offers top-notch real-time 3D solutions for video games development, scientific research, simulation, visualization, serious games, virtual reality systems and more.
The company is also renowned for its performance benchmark products, such as "Heaven DX11 Benchmark", the world’s first 3D benchmark with full support for Microsoft DirectX 11 and OpenGL 4.0.
UNIGINE Corp. is a registered developer of Apple Inc., AMD Inc., NVIDIA Corporation and Creative Technology Ltd. As a registered developer, UNIGINE works closely with its ecosystem partners in order to achieve the best level of performance and compatibility for all of our products. The company also develops technologies for Microsoft Windows, Linux, Mac OS X, Android and iOS and has a license to develop tools and middleware for PLAYSTATION®3 platform.
Website of UNIGINE Corp.: http://www.unigine.com/
More info about Oil Rush for mobile: http://oilrush-game.com/mobile/
Google Nexus 10 all sold out in Google Play Store
The Google Nexus 10 was back in stock at the Google Play Store on January 2nd. 19 days later, both the 16GB and 32GB variants of the tablet are once again sold out. Both versions of the tablet, which is produced by Samsung, offer Wi-Fi connectivity only. When in stock, the price is $399 for the 16GB model and $499 for 32GB.
The tablet sold out amid rumors that a new version of the Google Nexus 10 will be displayed at MWC next month in Barcelona. The GPU is expected to be updated to a 8-core T628 GPU. Those who have played with the new version of the tablet say that performance is like "night and day". Currently, the tablet features a dual-core 1.7GHz Cortex A15-based Samsung Exynos 5 chip, and a quad-core Mali-T604 GPU.
Will Google look to replenish inventory of the Google Nexus 10 or will it wait for a sequel version of the tablet to be launched? That is the big question for those interested in purchasing the slate.
source: GooglePlayStore (1), (2)
UPDATE: The Google Nexus 10 is back in stock... for now.
Kwalee Announce Koala
United Kingdom – Kwalee(TM) makes social games and Koala(TM) provides the entire infrastructure to allow players to find and play each other.
From the very beginning of Kwalee David Darling’s vision was that players want to play against each other rather than against some computer algorithm, so all Kwalee games are designed purely for player vs player gaming (PVP). This requires a mechanism for players to find each other and Kwalee had this in their first game, Gobang Social for the iPhone. They have since added many features to the point that they have now named the whole player network as Koala.
Outside consultants and subcontractors have contributed to the building of the network, which is now managed and developed full time by Kwalee’s Server Ninja, Steve Clark. Also each development team adds features to Koala as their games require that can then be rolled out to other Kwalee games. So a considerable amount of work has gone into developing Koala. Players who have played Gobang Social or Flip the Cats over time will have seen the constant development and improvement. More is to come with Farm Fighters, project Silver and project Teapot. Here are some of Koala’s major features:
* Totally platform independent. A player in the USA using a PC could play against someone in Italy using an Android tablet. Kwalee have cross platform games under development.
* Koala lives in the cloud and is extremely scaleable. It sits on Amazon servers to ensure maximum stability and speed.
* Huge amount of player data available for opponent selection and social interaction. These include sophisticated leaderboards, game-play achievements and stats which can be represented with badges or medals.
* Ability to run multiple in game currencies that can be part of the game mechanic and which can allow in game purchases to enhance the playing experience.
* Players can play very large numbers of simultaneous games. Also many players can play within one game, should Kwalee publish a game with this feature.
* Integration with Facebook, the Kwalee website, Email and Apple Game Center.
* In game chat allows the player to make new friends and share their gaming experience.
One feature of Koala is that Kwalee have gradually transferred more of each game from the user’s device to the server. This has the great advantage that changes to a game can now be made from Kwalee’s head office in Leamington and applied instantly to players all around the world. This flexibility allows games to be improved much more easily.
Server Ninja, Steve Clark is delighted with Koala: “This is the perfect job for me, enabling players all around the world to get more pleasure from their gaming is very satisfying. And the roadmap we are on will add further to people’s enjoyment of Kwalee games”.
David Darling, Kwalee CEO and co-founder of Codemasters is equally happy: “Playing games with other people is often more fun than playing on your own and Koala is a great way to hook up with your friends and make new ones. We plan to keep adding features to make it one of the best game players networks.”
Koala has been created by gamers for gamers and it is central to the social gaming experience that Kwalee offers.
Kwalee
YouTube Video
Koala Image
Kwalee is a company based in Leamington Spa that develop and publish social multiplayer games for iPhone and other mobile devices. Founded by David Darling CBE, co-founder of Codemasters, with decades of experience at the top level of the video game industry and contributions to many #1 games on numerous platforms in his CV. Kwalee is different. We seek to excite and entertain our customers with innovative new products that provide special experiences. Our ethos is based around a set of core values that put the customer first and which harness the creative skills of our staff to the maximum in order to do so. Kwalee is always very actively looking for those special people who want to join us in our exciting journey. Copyright (C) 2012 Kwalee. All Rights Reserved. Kwalee the Kwalee logo, Koala and the Koala logo are trademarks of Kwalee Ltd. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.
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